Apple Music Classical music streaming service has released a version 2.0 update that bring a couple of new features to the iPhone and iPad app. The Apple Music Classical service debuted in early 2023.
What’s New
Version HistoryVersion 2.0
This update adds album booklets for thousands of albums, and a Recently Added section to Library.
As first reported by MacRumors, the new version of the app adds album booklets for thousands of albums, offering multi-language liner notes, composer biographies, information about the orchestra, conductors, and soloists, plus where relevant, sung texts and opera libretti. This allows users to have a deeper understanding of the music they are listening to.
If a booklet is available for an album, an open book icon will appear in the upper-right hand corner of the screen. Tapping the icon will download the booklet, which can be viewed in the app.
In addition to the album booklets feature, version 2.0 also adds a new Recently Added section to the Library.
The Apple Music Classical app offers a simple interface for engaging with classical works. Users can search recordings by composer, work, conductor, or catalog number. Music can be streamed in high-quality audio of up to 192 kHz/24-bit Hi-Res Lossless. Thousands of recordings are also be available in Apple’s immersive spatial audio.
Apple also commissioned high-resolution digital portraits of famous composers like Ludwig van Beethoven, Frédéric Chopin, and Johann Sebastian Bach for the app, with more artwork to be added over time.
In May 2023, Apple updated Shazam to provide support for Apple Music Classical on the iPhone, allowing the two apps to team up to identify classical music.
In July 2024, Apple Music Classical debuted a Top 100 album chart. The list features the most popular classical music albums that are available globally, combining five data sources from over 165 countries. Sources include Apple Music Classical streams, Apple Music streams, iTunes downloads, iTunes song sales, and Shazam tags.
